Why Adult Learners Don’t Return to School for a Just One Reason

In today's solo episode, I'm reflecting on something I've carried with me for decades: the idea that education became a mirror for me—not just a way to learn about the world, but a way to learn about myself.I share the story of enrolling in college in my 30s after years of believing I wasn't "the academic type" and talk about what it was like to get back my first college paper. I also share about being asked, for the first time, "What do you think?" and how that question started to change everything. I reflect on the difference between earning a credential and being transformed by the process of earning it, and I invite you to consider what your own mirror might be showing you right now.Tune in and listen to the fifty-third episode of I Can Do This, Show Me How! I don't know what your mirror is showing you right now, but I hope this episode gives you a moment to pause and notice. Whether it's a class you've been curious about, a skill you've always wanted to learn, or just a question you haven't let yourself sit with, you don't need an answer today. Sometimes noticing the question is where the discovery begins.In this episode, you will learn:[02:46] Education as a mirror: it doesn't create new possibilities, it helps you see them.[06:07] We don't walk into classrooms, workplaces, or relationships as blank slates. We bring our histories, our assumptions, and the things we've never thought to question.[13:08] The shift began with learning to type at business college and a supervisor who saw potential in me before I saw it in myself[16:26] The moment that changed everything: an instructor's question on my first college paper and the beginning of learning to examine my own thinking.[19:20] A caution about talking about education only in terms of credentials: degrees matter, but they don't tell the story of who you become while earning them.[24:00] "I have never completed learning, and I hope I never do."[25:26] Reconsidering a belief isn't weakness, it's evidence you're paying attention.[26:41] My own practice for feeling stuck: getting curious about the assumption underneath the hesitation.[30:28] A closing invitation: you don't need to answer right away, sometimes it's enough just to notice the question.Let's Connect!My Email: [email protected] International: www.mentorfoundationusa.orgMentor: www.mentoring.orgAshoka Changemakers: www.ashoka.org Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.